Best Employers – 4 Critical Priorities

Recent ‘Best Employers” practices research shows that high employee engagement levels help organisations mitigate the impact of tough market conditions. The rewards for maintaining focus on employee engagement is clear … best employers achieve four times higher profit growth than other organisations.

All organisations are confronted by the same set of market forces and economic circumstances; however, best employers are driving increased discretionary effort from their workforce as a result of more comprehensive, outcomes-focused talent management practices.

The research shows the differentiating practices of best employers lie in four critical talent management priorities.

Employee engagement

Best Employers have more than twice as many ‘highly engaged’ employees than other organisations.
These individuals:

say positive things about their organisation;

intend to stay; and

strive to excel.

Best Employers have higher engagement across all age groups and job levels, and know that connecting middle management to business strategy is critical for ensuring front-line team members are focused on the priorities that impact strategy the most.

Best Employers are also more likely to make leaders accountable for effective employee engagement by linking it to performance feedback and reviews.

Committed leadership

Best Employers also make their leaders visible and support staff during change.

Employees at best employers, some 66 per cent believe: major change initiatives are handled well (compared to 37% at other organisations); senior leaders are accessible during major change (77% verses 51%); employees are given input into major change events (65% versus 37%); and communication during change is effective (69% versus 39%).

Employees at best employers are also more likely to perceive that their managers create the right conditions for high performance.

Employees say their managers: provide the right support (77% versus 63% at other organisations); find ways to help them grow in their job (69% versus 51%); inspire higher levels of performance (74% versus 57%); and hold employees accountable for setting and achieving goals (81% versus 64%).

High-performance culture

Best Employers are far more likely to differentiate their reward to drive performance, the research found.

Some 67 per cent of best employerspay top performers disproportionately high fixed and variable remuneration(i.e. more than twice what average performers receive), compared to only 45 per cent of other organisations.

Similarly, low performers at 83 per cent of best employers are paid less than half of what average performers receive (compared to 61% of other organisations).

Therefore employees within best employer organisations gain a clear benefit from being a high performer, compared with 41 per cent in other organisations.

Differentiated employment branding

The fourth area where best employers differentiate themselves is employer branding. Some 83 per cent of these top performing organisations have an explicit employer brand, compared to 39 per cent of other organisations.

Further, employees at best employers are far more likely to perceive that the company delivers on its promises to employees, makes clear commitments, and attract, retains and rewards the right people.

Are you engaging and developing the right people, to do the right stuff in the right way?

Do you have visible and supportive leaders … both self and socially aware, communicating, influencing and inspiring others?

Do you visibly value and reward your high performers … to encourage others to strive harder?

One size doesn’t fit all … don’t provide incentive for those great 110%ers, and eventually they will become 70%ers like the others [‘why do I bother’ attitude] … or leave.

Workforce Vitality can help you become ‘employers of choice’ … be engaged, be aware, be the change employees are looking for.

Wow that was strange. I just wrote an really long comment buut after I clicked submit my comment didn’t
sho up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing alll that over again. Anyhow, jyst wanted to say superb blog!

Hi Malorie, Thank you for your feedback. We have been receiving lots of comments, and unfortunately, also lots of spam … so comments posted wait until we have approved them for publishing. This process is clunky, and we are working on addressing that with a new website upgrade. We will also be posting more regularly, so hope you get to enjoy more ‘superb blogs’.